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In 1917, at the height of the war, British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour submitted a letter of intent supporting the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The British government hoped that the formal declaration—known thereafter as the Balfour Declaration —would encourage support for the Allies in World War I.

Arabs vehemently opposed the Balfour Declaration, concerned that a Jewish homeland would mean the subjugation of Arab Palestinians. The complex hostility between the two groups dates all the way back to ancient times when they both populated the area and deemed it holy.

Both Jews and Muslims consider the city of Jerusalem sacred. A piece of land located between Egypt and modern-day Israel. A rocky plateau between Syria and modern-day Israel. A territory that divides part of modern-day Israel and Jordan. The Zionism Movement In the late 19th and early 20th century, an organized religious and political movement known as Zionism emerged among Jews.

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Zionists wanted to reestablish a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Massive numbers of Jews immigrated to the ancient holy land and built settlements. Between 1882 and 1903, about 35,000 Jews relocated to Palestine. Another 40,000 settled in the area between 1904 and 1914.

Many Jews living in Europe and elsewhere, fearing persecution during the Nazi reign, found refuge in Palestine and embraced Zionism.

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Arabs in Palestine resisted the Zionism movement, and tensions between the two groups continue. An Arab nationalist movement developed as a result.

In May 1948, Israel was officially declared an independent state with David Ben-Gurionthe head of the Jewish Agency, as the prime minister. While this historic event seemed to be a victory for Jews, it also marked the beginning of more violence with the Arabs. Civil war broke out throughout all of Israel, but a cease-fire agreement was reached in 1949.

As part of the temporary armistice agreement, the West Bank became part of Jordan, and the Gaza Strip became Egyptian territory. Some of these include: Relations between Israel and Egypt were rocky in the years following the 1948 war. Israeli, France and Great Britain eventually withdrew from the conflict. In what started as a surprise attack, Israel in 1967 defeated Egypt, Jordan and Syria in six days. The fighting went on for two weeks, until the UN adopted a resolution to stop the war.

Syria hoped to recapture the Golan Heights during this battle but was unsuccessful. In 1981, Israel annexed the Golan Heights, but Syria continued to claim it as territory. Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank led to a 1987 Palestinian uprising and hundreds of deaths. After this, the Palestinian Authority formed and took over some territories in Israel.

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In 1997, the Israeli army withdrew from parts of the West Bank. Palestinians launched suicide bombs and other attacks on Israelis in 2000. The resulting violence lasted for years, until a cease-fire was reached. Israel announced a plan to remove all troops and Jewish settlements from the Gaza strip by the end of 2005. Israel went to war with Hezbollah—a Shiite Islamic militant group in Lebanon—in 2006. A UN-negotiated ceasefire ended the conflict a couple of months after it started.

Israel has been involved in repeated violence with Hamas, a Sunni Islamist militant group that assumed Palestinian power in 2006.

Some of the more significant conflicts took place beginning in 2008, 2012 and 2014. Israel Today Clashes between Israelis and Palestinians are still commonplace. Key territories of land are divided, but some are claimed by both groups. For instance, they both cite Jerusalem as their capital. Both groups blame each other for terror attacks that kill civilians. The Two-State Solution Several countries have pushed for more peace agreements in recent years. Many have suggested a two-state solution but acknowledge that Israelis and Palestinians are unlikely to settle on borders.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has supported the two-state solution but has felt pressure to change his stance. Netanyahu has also been accused of encouraging Jewish settlements in Palestinian areas while still backing a two-state solution. In a visit to Israel in May 2017, U.

President Donald Trump urged Netanyahu to embrace peace agreements with Palestinians. While Israel has been plagued by unpredictable war and violence in the past, many national leaders and citizens are hoping for a secure, stable nation in the future. Creation of Israel, 1948: Office of the Historian, U. The Arab-Israeli War of 1948: The Second Aliyah 1904 — 1914: The New York Times.